Denial
by We Thought It'd Be Funny
Summary: Well, what would you have done in this situation?


Just a little something something I cooked up. Not sure where it came from.

So, here you go.

I do not own Fire Emblem.

Sincerely,

-Funny.

* * *

Mathis walked calmly through the camp, his eyes flicking back and forth between the tents. He moved with a purpose, a mission- and he was determined to see it through.

It was nothing major for the Archanean League, no major mission that would lead them all to victory.

No. In the grand scheme of things, this was minor. Minor, but personal.

Mathis had noticed it a while ago- by all accounts, it had started happening right around when he had joined the League. His sister, Lena, had become…

Odd.

She seemed to look over her shoulder frequently, and constantly jumped whenever someone so much as brushed up against her. Mathis, as a brother, immediately set out to find out why.

Oddly enough, it seemed like everybody knew what was going on, but were less than eager to share. And with that, doubt began to work its way into his mind. Maybe Lena wasn't cut out for war. A healer like her was valuable for the front lines, but one could only take so much of the realities of war.

All signs seemed to point to Lena being unsuited for the battlefield. She had the whole of the League behind her decision to remain in the fight, but he was her brother, and the two of them needed to have a serious talk.

He could be a little stupid, when it came to his sister. Protecting her came first.

But, he couldn't take sole credit for her safety. Some of that credit belonged to a certain red-headed thief who happened to be in the same camp as Mathis, named Julian.

Mathis smiled at the thought of the thief. He had been such a good friend and loyal protector of his sister, that he thanked him for it most everyday. In fact, Julian had even taken to accompanying Lena when she went for short walks outside the camp. Mathis thanked him for that too, but when he did, Julian just blushed and commented, rather loudly, on the state of the weather.

Mathis stopped, as he realized he was standing in front of his sister's tent. He shrugged, and decided there was no time like the present.

He cleared his throat, and several things seemed to happen at once in the five seconds that followed. First, a rather delicate sounding "eep!" followed by a series of dull thunks and the sound of the shredding of fabric. Mathis was about to charge in, when his sister suddenly threw the tent flap aside. Her appearance was thoroughly disheveled; her hair was sticking up at odd angles, and her robes, white and sky blue in color, were wrinkled slightly around the sleeves. When she spoke, she talked loudly, with a blatant note of embarrassment in her voice.

"Hello brother!" She half-said, half-laughed. "What- What brings you here?" She asked, nervously straightening her hair and smoothing out her robes. Her face seemed to light up cherry red and she seemed reluctant to meet his gaze.

"Are you alright?" Mathis asked, his voice laced with great concern. "Are you hurt?"

Lena blinked, as if this were not the question she had expected. However, as if snapping out of a daze, she responded.

"Huh- uh- NO! I'm fine!" Lena said, in that odd half-laugh. "Perfectly fine!"

Mathis frowned, and looked around her. He saw that a large hole had been torn in the side of her tent.

"What happened?" He asked, oblivious to his sister becoming even redder in the face.

"Uh, I, that is, I, uh… Tripped!" she said brightly, after some thought.

Mathis raised an eyebrow. "You tripped?"

"Yep!"

"And tore through the side of a heavy duty canvas tent?"

"It was, uh, a nasty fall, and I was holding my… uh… necklace. It's… uh… kind of sharp around the edges of the pendant."

Mathis said nothing as Lena started to fidget.

"Really?"

"Yep!"

Mathis hummed in thought.

"Well, if you're sure about that. Go see the man at the forge, though. Maybe he can take care of that pendant."

"Huh…? Oh- okay."

Mathis smiled, and started to walk away, his previous task forgotten in the moment.

When her brother rounded the corner, Lena let out a pent-up sigh of relief. As she slowly let out the breath, a figure emerged from the shadows of the tent.

"I can't believe he bought it."

Lena nodded mutely, and looked up at Julian, smiling. The red-headed thief was returning the grin, putting Lena right at ease.

"Yes…" she sighed, wrapping her arms around the thief.

Her thief.

"He'll find out someday, though. About us. What then?" Julian asked, holding Lena at arm's length.

Lena thought about it a moment.

"How fast can you run?"

"Not fast enough…" he half-chuckled, half-groaned, at the thought of an irate cavalier chasing him across the countryside.

* * *

Don't let your imagination run away with you. They were just cuddling.

Well, I have nothing more to contribute.

See ya.

Sincerely,

-Funny.


End file.
